Agnihotri, Kamlesh Kumar

Abstract
China has actively begun to increase its naval capabilities since the last decade. As the PLA Navy aims at enhancing its strategic reach and push its maritime defence perimeter seaward, it requires modern naval hardware, additional infrastructure to support the growing force size, transformed operational doctrines, tactics and procedures and a matching manpower profile. The three primary objectives behind the PLA Navy’s modernisation programme are the Taiwan question, significant US naval presence in the Pacific Ocean and the desirability to develop a ‘blue water’ fleet to secure its sea lines of communication (SLOCs) passing though the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea. The last factor perhaps dictates the Chinese compulsion to aim for the PLA Navy’s permanent presence in the Indian Ocean. The PLA Navy’s current capabilities may not match its ambitions, but the rapid progress related to the acquisition of these capabilities, may pose questions on the future stability quotient in the Indian Ocean Region. Maintaining a clear perspective on this imminent event will serve the interests of the larger global community, well.
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